How Ironic!

Here we are less than 1 year away from the 10 year anniversary of the IBT nationwide strike of UPS and I look at this website and it's threads with a bit of humorous irony but at the same time I'm saddened.

Nearly 10 years ago, there was some disatisfaction among the union hourly ranks (I think no more/no less than today to be honest) but among the management ranks the loyality was literally rock solid. And to be honest, they had good cause to be and I take nothing away from that. In fact, I applaud it.

However, nearly 10 years later that once rock solid wall of loyality has many weak cracks and IMO continues to weaken at a speedy pace. As some evidence to consider I would point out the ever growing management turnover rate which in years past the only folks you heard of leaving were those retiring or those booted out and most of that was for horribly gross actions deserving of the boot. Some of that is still in play but you also see folks just either getting fed up and leaving or looking around and realizing that the outside does in many cases for a prepared management type to do much better, especially for the young management person with less than 10 years equity in the company builtup and who has skills and a good college background.

Compounding on top of this is the obvious fact that in years past, you could pour your life into this company for quite frankly average management pay but you also knew at the end of the day when the career was over, you were set for the easy life if you didn't sqander your stock during your worklife. Between good MIP's year after year to growing stock and stock splits, it was not impossible for even the lowest of supervisor's to call it a day at UPS and walk out a millionaire which a ton of em' have done over the years. Outside of rising to the higher levels of management or buying stock on a regular basis along your career, the probability of a young/new supervisor making their million while never rising above a level 2 manager is becoming more and more unlikely now and in the days ahead. It may be even impossible now and that is likely the case.

Now we see more and more talk of healthcare cuts and pension cuts to go on top of the above and one would seriously have to question why should the best and brightest even consider taking the role of management in this company?

Over the last few months I've seen more and more threads here with posts from those who alledge to be in management giving comments that are indications of much disatisfaction. To those of us who in 97' we're willing to listen to and consider a UPS run pension fund and who also realized a gut uneasiness with the IBT run plans are now left to wonder where we might be in all of this had UPS gotten control of the pension?

For years, we accepted the fact that UPS would do for and take care of the management side of the equation and as an hourly, in a strange way, that did offer some comfort that if you had loyality to UPS, UPS was loyal to you but that is clearly not the case anymore. I can only be left to wonder if this is the real UPS or sometime in the 90's it became hijacked away from those who held Casey-like principles of business and the young barbarians at the gate who were pocessed by the evils of filthy lucer and the fast talk of the demons on Wall Street took total control and they buried the rest of the Casey legacy?

The impact up in Canada is even worse. They (Atlanta) are so meiserly with our(Canada/Americas) budget that they regularly step over a dollar to pick up a dime.

And only the truly blind continue to go into the opt-in process. It is all becoming a horrible joke and the sucky thing is that it is NOT the fault of the front-line supes and managers. And even some of the VPs are VERY good and hopefully never leave. But there is just so much crap coming down from the pearly palace that is is near unstoppable.

The impact up in Canada is even worse. They (Atlanta) are so meiserly with our(Canada/Americas) budget that they regularly step over a dollar to pick up a dime.

And only the truly blind continue to go into the opt-in process. It is all becoming a horrible joke and the sucky thing is that it is NOT the fault of the front-line supes and managers. And even some of the VPs are VERY good and hopefully never leave. But there is just so much crap coming down from the pearly palace that is is near unstoppable.

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I agree 100% that the beginning of the end was the public offering. The senior members wanted to cash out and double their stock values with the IPO. That is when I started to notice the flood gates open and the once loyal managers take their money and run. Many of them would have stayed but the inhumane, relentless, your never good enough attitude flowing down from upper management sent them running for their sanity. All of the good ones left and now we have either have young and ignorant managers or former drivers with bad attitudes and some even have criminal records. The company is going down the brown tube.